In my last article, I graded the AFC East division, after I gave some details about how my algorithm works. In case you would like to read it again, you can press the following hyperlink: AFC East Draft Analysis

Note: I placed player and team grades all together, under the announcing of the picks, so you can get a more collective view of them.

Now, as Bill Bellichick would say, on to the AFC North.

AFC North
Once a division with some of the most credible Super Bowl contenders, the AFC North has lost that credibility in the past years due to the Bengals losing their play-off streak while the Steelers and Ravens losing their touch. While the division is in an upward trend, especially after this draft, it's still not where it needs to be to regain its status in the league. Who knows? Maybe, the Ravens and the Browns could complement their draft class enough to compete for the championship this year or the Steelers could surprise people by overcoming their deficiences with their experience. Maybe, the Bengals will ride this draft class' promise. I guess we will see. But, for now, let's just see how those mentioned draft classes faired in general.

Finding Jaylon Ferguson in the third round was pure luck for the Ravens. The reason he dropped so much was a battery case in his freshman year for which he has accepted full responsibility and, apparently, moved on. There are no indications that this wasn't a momentary incident, so I wouldn't sweat on him becoming the new Tyreek Hill. Apart from his off-field "drama", he is second-round talent with the potential of a first-rounder, so this was certainly a good selection. If he bulks up a bit in the NFL, he should blossom into an unstoppable force.

Worst Pick: Miles Boykin, Wide Receiver

The Ravens really needed quite a few wide receivers, so it wasn't neither a surprise nor a bad decision to draft another one. What I'm concerned about is Boykin, who is in the frame of Calvin Johnson, but lacks the aforementioned player's success at college. For such a project, with other needs like a Center still unadressed, Boykin isn't exactly the best possible pick in the third round. Otherwise, his big stature could provide a new element to the offense and a valuable weapon for the sophomore Lamar Jackson.

My Favourite Pick: Tracy McSorley, Quarterback

Taysom Hill No. 2? Probably not, but he could still become a player with a similar skillset and a powerful gadget weapon in an offense which looks to be more exotic than ever. To be honest, McSorley isn't my favourite pick. My actual favourite pick is Jaylon Ferguson, but I already wrote about him, so I couldn't just write about the same player again and yet, I'm still rambling. Moving on.

General Synopsis:
The Ravens had two simple goals in mind before they starting selecting players in this year's draft. The first was supplying Lamar Jackson with enough weapons and protection so he can keep progressing. Apart from the Center position, which is currently occupied by underwhelming starter Matt Skura, they did just that by diversifying the offense by adding explosive players like Hollywood Brown and Justice Hill and some more powerful ones like Myles Boykin and Ben Powers. Their last pick, Tracy McSorley, shouldn't be forgotten as an important chess piece in wild formations and plays. The second goal was making sure their defense remained dominant. Without focusing too much on the future and looking at the situation for this season, the only question mark is whether Patrick Onwuasor can develop into a quality inside linebacker. Otherwise, Baltimore seems set to once again have one of the most stingy defenses in the NFL.

One of three picks that received a grade above 9, Pratt was definitely a find due to the fact he is a three-down player who can tackle as well as he covers his opponents. To find him in the third round was an absolute steal.

Worst Pick: Rodney Anderson, Running Back

This might have been the worst pick in the draft. Not only do the Bengals not have a major need at running back since they have Joe Mixon and Giovani Bernard as starters and new rookie Trayveon Williams as a backup, but they picked one who hasn't shown he can handle the next level of competition. Another offensive lineman or a wide receiver or a defensive tackle would probably be the optimal options in this situation.

My Favourite Pick: Michael Jordan, Guard

Just like it happened with the Ravens earlier, my favourite pick happens to be the best graded pick, Germaine Pratt. Unlike the Ravens' pick, Tracey McSorley, the other two options, Michael Jordan and Jonah Williams, could be absolute stars by themselves instead of just backups. Before I start praising Jordan, I must say that picking Jonah Williams instead of Dwayne Haskins is one of the best decisions I've ever seen the Bengals make. Something like kicking out Marvin Lewis. Anyway, Jordan has enough versatility to play at both Guard and Center, which makes him a valuabe commodity. Apart from that, he has never missed a start since he took over the right guard spot midway through the 2016 season for the Buckeyes and he never dissapointed by helping his team excel in the running game and be more than adequate in pass protection. Having the same name with a legend from another sport doesn't mean anything, but, in this case, there might be another legend in the making. Unfortunately, being a legend in the offensive line of a failing team will never be as popular as being a shooting guard of an all-time successful basketball team.

General Synopsis:
Definitely not a perfect draft by any standard, but it inspired hope for the new regime under Duke Tobin and Zac Taylor. Tobin, the Bengal's Director of Player Personnel, who was responsible for this year's draft class, showed the entire NFL audience that Cincinnati isn't ready to tank yet and aims to compete as soon as the next season for the AFC North Division. I'm not sure they are equipped enough this year, but if they follow up on this amazing draft class with a similar one in the following year's draft, they will be ready.

Many touted Williams as the No. 1 or No. 2 Cornerback in this draft and the Browns only gave up the No. 144 pick to trade up in the second round and select him. I can't argue with that move. While the Browns already have three experienced starters at the Cornerback position in Denzel Ward, Terrance Mitchell and T.J. Carrie, another player was needed to shake things up a bit. Williams is a prototypical cover corner for big-bodied receivers. Ward usually handles the smaller ones, so Williams will likely take over Terrance Mitchell's spot, which wasn't exactly secure, due to Mitchell's inconsistencies in performance. In summary, this was a magnificent pick by the Browns, who can both improve their starting defense's performance and add depth with this pick.

Worst Pick: Drew Forbes, Guard

This is pretty simple. Forbes is not a bad pick. He was just unlucky, because the rest of this class is extremely promising. Forbes could easily be a capable starter even by next year. Maybe he could even be traded for a pick better than the one he was selected in. Although, I highly doubt a trade commencing, because Forbes was probably drafted to be the backup to and, eventually, succeed Joel Bitonio.

My Favourite Pick: Sheldrick Redwine, Safety

Yet another depth move for Cleveland, who have built one of the deepest rosters through this draft and free agency. He reminds me of D.J. Swearinger, a safety who started in the league without intercepting a lot of passes, while tackling pretty well, and came into his own with the Redskins with back-to-back 4-interception seasons. That's probably Redwine in a nutshell, unless he picks up the knowledge provided by his teammates and improves his coverage capabilities. Morgan Burnett, who is currently slated to start for the Browns at the Free Safety position, could help a lot in that regard.

General Synopsis:
I can honestly say that I couldn't find any major flaws in the Brown's draft, except the facts that they didn't draft a Left Tackle to replace the unstable Greg Robinson and an Inside Linebacker molded for the SAM/Stack Linebacker position to replace Avery Genard. Besides these issues, the Cleveland Browns are one of the most complete teams in the league, at least, on paper.

Best Pick: Isaiah Buggs, Defensive Tackle:
The Steelers certainly had some terrific picks, but none better than Isaiah Buggs, a player with experience at both Defensive Tackle and Defensive End, who is capable of taking over for either Cameron Heyward or Stephon Tuitt, should they succumb to injury. Besides that, Heyward is thirty years old, so a plan to succeed him was getting increasingly more important.

Worst Pick: Diontae Johnson, Wide Receiver:
I'm not sure the Steelers even needed to draft a wide receiver to begin with, much less in the third round. While Johnson is a great fit, even if he wasn't the best wide receiver still on my board at that time, the Steelers are extremely loaded in the position regardless if Antonio Brown is in the team or not. Every single Wide Receiver spot had a starter and a ready backup before Johnson was drafted. I am certain the Steelers will find a way to use him. What I'm not so certain about in regards to Kevin Colbert's strategy is the fact that there were some pretty potent offensive tackles available who could compete right away with Matt Feiler, Jerald Hawkins and Zach Banner for the Right Tackle position.

My Favourite Pick: Sutton Smith, Defensive End:
A potential future All-Pro at round six? Golden pick. But, if he is that good, how did he fall in the sixth round? Well, size matters. Smith has a small stature for a defensive end or an outside linebacker, so Pittsburgh probably picked him to play inside. While I don't think that would be the best decision, due to the fact he possesses a high motor, relentless pursuit and natural instincts which could help him succeed at a sub-package defensive end-linebacker hybrid position, he could still wreak havoc and make the rest of the thirty-one teams that passed him regret it. He can even cover, so it's possible for him to be a great linebacker, even if it's not the position he started with.

General Synopsis:
Yet another near masterful draft by an AFC North team. The Steelers' strategy was pretty balanced, as they picked five defensive and four offensive players. At the moment, none other than Devin Bush is slated to be a starter, but, even so, they improved a depth chart too often afflicted with injuries and gave their starters a chance to take some time off and rest in the game. Personal Note: While I'm not a big fan of the Devin Bush pick, due to him not being worth the No. 10 pick alone, much less a trade-up, I completely understand the Steelers trying to patch up a vulnerable position. He will probably cause me to forget I ever doubted him.